BETHANY, W.Va. -- Junior quarterback Jacob Pugh (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) passed for a career-high five touchdowns to guide the Washington & Jefferson College football team to a 42-7 win Saturday afternoon in a Presidents' Athletic Conference game at Bison Stadium in West Virginia.
The win improves W&J to 2-0 in the PAC. The Presidents have now won nine-straight in the head-to-head series with the Bison. Bethany falls to 0-1 after dropping its season opener.
After both teams exchanged punts on their opening drives, W&J scored on the first place of its second offensive possession. Pugh hit sophomore John Peduzzi (Hilton Head, S.C. / Hilton Head Christian Academy) for a 63-yard touchdown pass. The point after by senior kicker Ricky Hunter (Freeport, Pa./Freeport) gave W&J a 7-0 lead with 6:39 left in the first quarter.
Following another defensive stop, W&J drove 52 yards on eight plays for another scoring drive. A 24-yard pass play from Pugh to Anthony Rosati (Chadron, Ohio/Perry) pushed W&J into the red zone. Junior Zach Cernuto (Scottdale, Pa./Southmoreland) capped the drive with a two-yard touchdown run to extend the lead to 14-0 at the 1:04 mark of the first.
W&J added to its lead early in the second quarter. Another big passing play by Pugh and Peduzzi spanned 53 yards to put W&J at the Bethany 12-yard line. Two plays later, Pugh connected with sophomore Kobe Derosa (New Castle, Pa./Laurel) for a 12-yard touchdown pass. The touchdown was the first of the career for Derosa. The point after by Hunter made it 21-0 W&J less than a minute into the second quarter.
Following another three-and-out by the Bethany offense, W&J marched down the field once again. The Presidents needed just six plays to account for 61 yards on the scoring drive. A 27-yard rush by sophomore Troy Volpatti (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) highlighted the drive, which was eventually capped by a 24-yard touchdown pass by Pugh to Peduzzi. The Pugh to Peduzzi combination has accounted for five passing touchdowns over the first two weeks. Hunter added the PAT to stretch the W&J lead to 28-0 with 8:48 left in the half.
Bethany got on the scoreboard on its ensuing drive. A 12-yard pass from Kayrus Sam to Trevon Dean cut the W&J lead to 28-7 at the 5:01 mark. W&J quickly answered the score on its next drive. The Red and Black needed just five plays to reach the end zone for a fifth time in the first half. A 32-yard scoring strike from Pugh to Rosati gave W&J a 35-7 lead following Hunter's point after at the 2:36 mark of the second.
The Bison appeared poised to add another touchdown before halftime but a fumble by Bethany receiver Tim Mickens near the goal line resulted in a touchback. That allowed W&J to take a decisive 35-7 lead into halftime.
W&J added its sixth and final touchdown of the day on its opening drive of the second half. The Presidents used a 12-play, 70-yard drive to extend its lead to 42-7 on a 25-yard touchdown pass by Pugh to Rosati. Their second touchdown connection of the day came with 10:11 on the third quarter clock.
Neither team found the end zone over the final 26-plus minutes of game action. The Presidents put together a 17-play drive that lasted more than nine minutes of the fourth quarter. The extended drive pushed W&J to the Bethany four-yard line. However, the Presidents kneeled the ball on four consecutive plays to end the drive.
The W&J offense surpassed 500 yards of total offense for a second-straight week. The Presidents finished with 26 first downs, 12 of which came through the air and 11 of which came via the ground game.
W&J was 7-of-12 on third downs and 2-of-3 on fourth downs. Bethany converted just 2-of-11 on third down attempts.
Pugh completed 13-of-17 pass attempts for 294 yards. He tossed a career-high five touchdowns. Pugh has eight passing touchdowns and 586 passing yards with no interceptions through two weeks.
Peduzzi and Rosati both surpassed 100-yard receiving efforts. Peduzzi posted a career-high 161 receiving yards on just four receptions. Peduzzi has five touchdown receptions through two games. Rosati caught five passes for 102 yards and two scores.
Senior Justin Huss (Derry, Pa./Derry) rushed for a team-high 68 yards to lead a balanced ground attack.
Defensively, junior Dawson Dietz (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) paced the defensive efforts with a team-high eight tackles. Dietz had three tackles for loss, a sack and two forced fumbles in the victory.
Junior Avery Keith (Hartville, Ohio/Lake) finished with seven tackles which included 1.5 tackles for loss. Sophomore Bruno Fabrycki (New Salem, Pa./Albert Gallatin) put together a strong game with seven tackles and three pass breakups.
W&J welcomes league rival Westminster College to Cameron Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 16. The Presidents' home opener is scheduled for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
NOTES: The meeting was the 99th in the all-time series. W&J holds a sizable 78-21 advantage over Bethany in the head-to-head series.
Pugh's big day guides W&J to lopsided road win at Bethany
/seasons/2023/boxscores/20230909_81mn.xml
2023
Washington and Jefferson
42
Bethany
7
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington and Jefferson (2-0) | 14 | 21 | 7 | 0 | 42 |
| Bethany (0-1) | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
Sep 09, 2023